Like Siri or Google Now, the Josh programming language is built to support natural language voice commands. This includes greetings, questions, instructions, and more. Further, Josh is built to control and connect any “smart” device, from any device. For example, with Josh you can turn on your speakers from your watch, change the temperature from your phone, shut off the lights from your desktop, etc. Initially, Josh will be focused on the smart home, but over time we envision a more general-purpose AI. Josh will go where you go, making your life easier and more productive.
One of the challenges to building a fully automated house, particularly one that grows and evolves over time, is the ability to program with ease. In theory it’s great if your sprinklers turn off when it rains, or if the lights go on at sunset, but these actions today take a skilled programmer many hours to assemble. Compare that to asking a friend to turn off the lights or put on the Coldplay station. Now imagine if that friend had a perfect memory, was reliable, didn’t mind multitasking, and only needed to be asked once. In essence, that’s the promise of voice. Using natural language commands as though talking to a friend, Josh can be taught with ease. Even complicated queries can be effortlessly programmed, such as, “At sunrise if I’m home slowly fade the bedroom lights on, open the drapes, turn on the radio, and brew a pot of coffee.” We believe programming should be as natural as chatting with a friend, and this capability is essential to a truly connected house.